Environmental news at a glance

For week ending September 4, 1998
By Steve Newman

To check out this week's natural events, click on any icon.

Wildfires
Electrical storms developing over many parts of Southern California ignited dozens of wildfires that destroyed 26 homes and burned 30,000 acres of forest and brush. The record high temperatures making conditions so ripe for the fires were also responsible for invasions of a variety of pests into populated areas. Residents have been calling emergency telephone dispatchers with complaints of snakes, spiders, rodents, coyotes and other animals seeking refuge in their homes from wildfires and a brutal heat wave.

Devastating fires were quickly approaching Brazil's largest Indian reservation on Tuesday, killing wildlife and livestock, and endangering tens of thousands of Indians. The blazes were sparked two weeks ago near Xingu National Park in Mato Grosso state by farmers clearing land for planting.

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Whales Warn of Pollution
Dutch scientists told reporters that traces of toxic chemicals found in the bodies of whales indicate that man-made pollution is spilling deep into the Atlantic. Polybrominated chemical compounds were detected in the bodies of 13 minke and sperm whales that washed up on the Dutch coast in recent years. Those marine mammals feed at depths of 3,000 feet. Researcher Jan Boon of the Netherlands Institute for Marine Research said the findings show that toxic pollution has spread further into the ocean's food chain than previously thought.

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South Asia Floods
Devastating summer floods which have swamped Bangladesh and eastern parts of India for more than two months have now claimed 550 lives and caused an estimated $880 million in damage in Bangladesh alone. Flood waters have grown to cover two-thirds of the impoverished nation with more than 20 million people left homeless by the inundations.

In India, flooding has claimed more than 1,000 lives and is also affecting millions of people. Disease is spreading because villagers in relief camps have little or no access to clean drinking water and often use the same muddy water for bathing and washing clothes.

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Tropical Storms
Hurricane Earl drenched parts of the southeastern U.S. with as much as 15 inches of rainfall as it roared across the Florida Panhandle.

In Mexico, hurricane Isis inundated parts of Baja California and the states of Sinaloa and Sonora before it lost force over the Desert Southwest of the United States.

Typhoon Rex finally dissipated over the cooler waters of the North Pacific, but not before it caused extensive flooding and numerous deadly mudslides to the north in Japan.

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Earthquakes
A very powerful earthquake struck just south of the Philippines' island of Mindanao, causing panicked office workers to flee from swaying buildings. No significant damage was reported.

Earth movements were also felt in the northern Philippines, eastern Japan, central Afghanistan, southwestern Tibet, Slovenia and south-central Alaska.

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Fiji Drought
A prolonged drought parching the South Pacific island nation of Fiji has become so severe that children are dropping out of school and some residents are scouring garbage dumps to feed their families. The worst drought in decades has withered crops in the western and northern parts of the country where residents depend on sugar cane and vegetables to survive.

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Migration Fatalities
The bodies of approximately 100 storks were found dead of exhaustion in southern Israel near the Red Sea resort of Eilat during late August. The storks are believed to have been on their annual migration southward from Europe to Africa and were blown off their normal course, which is about 60 miles northeast of Eilat. Eight storks found alive were treated by wildlife officials before being set free again after the birds regained their normal weight of six pounds. Ornithological experts told reporters that the birds may have become exhausted from flying over the hot region or from being unable to find food.

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© 1998, Earth Environment Service. Dist. by Los Angeles Times Syndicate
Additional Sources: Japan Meteorological Agency, U.S. Climate Analysis Center, U.S. Earthquake Information Center and the World Meteorological Organization.